Ribonucleic acid polymerase activities in Jerusalem artichoke tissue.

1. Artichoke tuber tissue contained RNA polymerase activity bound to the chromatin and in the supernatant after chromatin sedimentation. 2. The activity in the supernatant, the soluble polymerase, was fractionated into polymerases I and II by DEAE-cellulose chromatography, and the properties of each activity were determined. 3. The proportions of chromatin-bound and soluble activities varied with growth of the tissue, and there was a correlation between chromatin-bound activity and RNA accumulation. 4. The properties of the solubilized chromatin activity were compared with those of the soluble activity, and the relationship between these two activities is discussed.